The present invention relates generally to the field of prosthesis apparatus for use in achieving precision movement and overcoming neurological dysfunction movements of a human limb, and more particularly to apparatus for use in achieving mobility assistance for the paralyzed, amputeed, and spastic person (MAPAS).
In the VA system (Department of Veterans Affairs), over 1,000,000 patients are cared for who are confined to wheelchairs for a variety of reasons. In certain diseases (such as stroke), it is extremely important to get the patient on his feet as soon as possible after the disorder reasonably subsides. There are not sufficient physical therapists and facilities to perform this immediate help. With a device as described herein, more patients may be put into physical therapy regimes sooner and thus reduce the long term care necessary for these patients. This device will reduce the amount of manual aid required to administer physical therapy. Also this device provides a method of prodding assistance for those with permanent disabilities who need to walk.
The following references are of interest, and are referenced in the specification.
[1] M. Messner and Asad Davari, "Hydraulically Dampened Knee Flexion Orthosis", The 19th IEEE Annual Northeast Bioengineering Conference, March 18-19, Newark, N.J., pp. 119-120.
[2] K. A. Kacmarek, J. G. Webster, P. Bach-y-Rita, and W. J. Thompkins, "electrotactile and Vibroctile Displays For Sensory Substitution Systems", IEEE Trans. on Biomedical Engineering, Vol. 38, No. 1, January 1991, pp. 1-16.
[3] P. Bach-y-Rita, Brain Mechanisms In Sensory Substitution, New York Academic, 1972.
[4] P. Bach-y-Rita, C. C. Collins, F. A. Saunders, B. White, and L. Scadden, "Vision Substitution By Tactile Image Projection", Nature, Vol. 221, pp. 963-964, 1969.
The following United States patents are of interest.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,842,607 Repperger et aI
U.S. Pat. No. 4,783,656 Katz et al
U.S. Pat. No. 5,101,812 Wang
U.S. Pat. No. 5,121,747 Andrews
U.S. Pat. No. 5,252,102 Singer et al.
The Repperger et al. patent utilizes the concept of force reflection to mitigate spastic or tremor movement through the use of a device outside the body. This device, however, is only used on the patient's hand and does not incorporate any outside brace on the leg(s) of the patient.
The Katz patent describes a system for use by quadriplegics and others having less than full use of their limbs for controlling the environment, such as appliances, using a lingually operated switch located on a dental appliance, which activates an FM transmitter.
The Wang patent discloses an orthosis apparatus, which provides support to a user's arms, fingers, and legs.
The Andrews patent describes a functional electrical stimulation orthosis for restoring locomotion in paraplegics. The orthosis comprises knee locking means, sensor means, control means, and, first and second electrode means.
The Singer patent discloses a therapeutic electronic range of motion apparatus which includes a remote subsystem for generating motion commands which are transmitted to a local subsystem at an orthosis, prosthesis or CPM machine.